It's a shame that I chose to come to Kew Gardens on an off peak day, which tied in with the Christmas lights celebrations that evening. And that the Temperate House and Pagoda - the main parts of the gardens, were closed for renovations (and had been for the past five years, but saw no mention of that anywhere). But either way, this is a place I highly recommend.

I'm shooting content for a magazine right now, and my plan was originally to shoot in The City and around London Bridge to get some more original content, but instead ended up in the dark depths of Zone 3 after a friend said he'd go.

Victorian architecture is an odd one for me. It's like studio photography for the most part: I don't particularly like it's frivolity, but I can appreciate the times where it's done properly. Of course, with the Victorians, you did it properly or you didn't do it at all.

The first large scale use of wrought iron, which still stands nearly two hundred years later, the Palm House at Kew is a prime example of Victorian architecture done right. Perfectly symmetrical from whichever way you look at it, sitting betwixt the museum and the end of Syon Vista. It's also a perfect example of Victorian wealth, yet in a more subdued manner.